Sloppy Work Blamed For Cta Car Damage

May 04, 1987

Sloppy procedures by maintenance workers may have caused at least $6,000 in damage to two Chicago Transit Authority rapid-transit cars, CTA officials have acknowledged.

In the first incident, on April 21, an ``inspection plate`` came off the wheel assembly of a car on the Douglas-O`Hare line, allowing oil to leak out and causing the wheels to lock, said Richard Schneider, the CTA`s maintenance chief. A worker apparently failed to put the plate back on the assembly or did not properly tighten six bolts on the plate after an inspection on April 17, he said.

George Dimitsas, a former CTA assistant foreman who has criticized the authority`s maintenance program, said gears and wheels and an armature on the car were ruined when it ground to a halt. He estimated damage at $20,000.

However, Schneider said that a preliminary check showed damage amounting to no more than $1,500.

About a week later, wheels on another car operating on the same line locked because of absence of oil.

``In this case, the inspection plate was there,`` Schneider said.

``Everything was in place and tight. But there was no oil in the system, and the question is why. There was either a leak in the case or a worker didn`t put oil in.``

Dimitsas said sources inside the CTA told him the worker failed to replace oil in the assembly.

Damage ``could get up between $5,000 and $10,000,`` Schneider said. ``We won`t know until we find out what is inside.``